TRIBUTES have been paid to a popular shop owner who "helped everyone" in his village.

Dad-of-two Devendra Varsani, known to many as Dave, died on Monday January 11 after a heart attack.

The 47-year-old, who had been fighting a covid-19 infection, had run Dave & Prem's SMS Village Store in Ainsworth for almost 24 years, becoming a key figure in the local community.

His daughter Anvi, 19, told The Bolton News there had been an outpouring of support since her father's death.

She said: "The response we've had has been absolutely overwhelming, I knew he knew a lot of people but I didn't realise how much he had impacted people's lives.

"Alongside being charitable and helping everyone, he also had a cheeky personality and was always pulling pranks - it's been really heartwarming to read all the personal experiences people had with him.

"I'm extremely proud of what he's done, he's done it all for me and my brother so we could have the opportunities he couldn't at our age.

"He will be greatly missed and I'm the luckiest girl in the world to call myself his daughter.

"I'll do everything I can to make him proud."

Devendra grew up in Kenya, leaving school at 15-years-old after his father died.

The young man started working, and moved to the UK in June 1995 when he married Premila, known as Prem.

As he left school early, the only thing Devendra knew how to do was run a business, and the determined young man opened the village store in Church Street in May, 1997 with his wife.

The couple had two children together, 19-year-old Anvi, and her younger brother, 15-year-old Jihan.

All four members of the family attended the Shree Swaminarayan Mandir Temple in Deane, with Devendra becoming very well-known to the community – visiting the cash and carry to buy donations on behalf of the temple.

He organised two donations to the Royal Bolton Hospital, Bolton Hospice, and Fairfield General Hospital during lockdown.

Anvi is determined to help her mum keep the shop running in honour of her dad's hard work.

She added: "We will never ever forget him – even though he's gone his memory will never fade, it will live on through us and we hope that we can live up to what he did.

"We know how much that shop meant to him, it was his pride and joy so we will carry it on the best as we can. He's still watching us and he wouldn't want the shop to go down hill.

"He was very big in the Hindu community in Bolton, and would go to donate blood as often as he could.

"He just wanted everyone to get what they needed – he used to leave the house at 3am every morning without fail to go queue up at the cash and carry for hours just so he could get all the supplies on time for people in the village.

"He helped everyone, that's what he wanted to do. I don't think anyone will ever forget him."